A Shot In The Dark
by Misch13vous
Summary: The world has gone to hell and the dead have risen. Rhea is just trying to survive. Ever since she left New York she's been on her own. All she has is her bow and her loyal companion Monty, a German Shepard. Meeting Rick's group changes the course of her journey. With no where to go and no one to find Rhea decides to stick with them. Daryl Dixon/OC
1. ONE

**AN: Welcome to "A Shot In The Dark"! **  
**Disclaimer- I do not own anything from The Walking Dead. All rights are reserved to the producers.**  
**The only thing I do own are the original characters and original events that take place in this story.**

**This first chapter is for introducing the character so sorry if its boring and short!**

* * *

It was too damn hot in Georgia. All she could see were mirages down the highway. It had felt like an eternity since Rhea had started following the empty road. Thankfully she hadn't run into any flesh-eating biters. She was too exhausted to fight, let alone run. A heavy panting sounded beside her. Melissa looked at her companion, a larger-than-normal German Shepard.  
His legs were dragging with every step.

_"Poor boy, I need to find us some shade and water before we die of heat strokes"_ she thought.

The only problem was that there was no telling how many biters would be in the forest. Was it worth the risk going in there in their exhausted state?  
Rhea saw no hope in continuing down the road. They had been walking since the sun came up and still hadn't came across a town or a rest stop or a house or even a living person. She clicked her tongue and veered into the forest, the dog closely following her. His ears perked up, alert to any sound that could possibly be danger. The trees offered some escape from the sweltering sun and Rhea relished it. She was actually relieved by the sound of leaves crunching under her boots and the occasional bird call.  
Most of their trek had been dead silent.

"All right Monty. Search for the sound of water. Search. We need to find a creek or river if we want to survive. Got that?"

The dog looked at her and nodded his head. Or at least she thought he did. She couldn't be sure, she was going crazy from the monotony of the days. But it would be plausible if Monty did nod, they had been together for almost 5 years now and Monty knew Rhea better than anyone. Hell, Rhea felt she knew Monty better than most of her friends. Her friends. She suddenly wondered about them and if they were safe. It had been so long since she even thought of them. Losing herself in nostalgia Rhea was startled by Monty's sudden bark. Raising her bow in reaction, Rhea immediately focused on the moving shape a few yards away from them.  
Monty lowered his head and stiffened his stance, a growl growing from deep in his chest. It was a biter.

"Shh. Down boy, I got this one," she commanded.

She aimed her bow and swiftly hit her target. Right in the head. There was a thud and the biter was on the floor. Rhea walked up to it and retrieved her arrow. The smell of rotting flesh overwhelmed her and she tried to cover her nose. Carefully lifting its clothing, Rhea began to dig through its pockets looking for anything useful. Sometimes she felt that doing this was almost crossing some sacred, spiritual line but what the hell these fuckers were dead - not even human anymore. Unfortunately this one had empty pockets. Getting up, they continued on their way deeper into the forest.

After what seemed like hours and 5 more biters Rhea was about to give up. They were down to a quarter of a gallon of water left and even less hope. She looked down at her dog admiring the determination in his eyes. If she ever commanded him to do a task he would do it. He was good like that. She was certain it was because he had been trained to be a K9 unit dog for the police. She was grateful he still knew a lot of the commands and how to act them out. The attack and defense ones definitely came in handy.  
Suddenly Monty froze in the point stance.

"Locate!" Rhea told him and Monty took off running.

Quickly weaving in and out of trees they came to a clearing in the middle of the forest. The trees grew in tell-tale patterns that there was a river near by. Finally the weary pair found what they had been looking for. The river was small and lined with jagged rocks.  
This was the perfect place to set up a camp.

Rhea wanted to scream with joy. But she caught that excitement in her throat. Loud noises attracted the biters like nothing else. Carefully jumping down the rocks she filled up both her gallon jugs and drank her fill of water.

Unaware of her surroundings, a biter quietly hobbled toward the girl. Its arms stretched out in primal instinct to grab onto some flesh. Before it could get close Monty leapt at its throat and began to tear at it. Rhea spun around instantly, grabbed her hunting knife and plunged it deep into the biter's eye. Black blood spilled out of it. She let out her breath, the adrenaline still coursing through her veins.

"Monty you're a life saver," she panted, petting the dog between his ears.

"Let's clean that mouth of yours though. I bet that bastard's blood is all kinds of bad."

Rhea never felt good after Monty attacked biters. What if biting them would somehow infect him and turn him into a dog zombie?

The sun was going down and a cold night was setting in. A tree had grown over a large rock, which lifted up its roots creating a tiny cave. Rhea decided to use it as makeshift shelter and cleared it out. She started a small fire in front of the opening and began to look through her bag for some food. Only a pack of crackers left. Her heart sunk, realizing just how long they had been on the road and how long they hadn't found a town. She gave a fourth of the crackers to Monty and a fourth for herself. They'd need to ration until the morning. Melissa pushed her bow into the crevice and crawled in. Getting settled in she pulled her sleeping bag out of her pack and Monty laid across her lap. She kept her knife in her hand as a precaution. Pulling her hood over her ears she adjusted Monty to between her legs and put his head on her chest. The opening of the crevice was protected by over hanging roots making it hard for anything to get in. Rhea watched the fire slowly die and thought about all the people she cared for, letting the memories take over her mind and the darkness lulled her to sleep.

Early morning light shone through the roots that covered the crevice opening. Rhea blinked her eyes a few times before pushing out her bow and pack.  
Monty followed her as she crawled out into the cool forest air. There were no signs that anyone or anything had come through during the night.  
Feeling safe for the most part, Rhea sat down cross legged and brought out a map. For a while now, they had been traveling on back roads and small highways. This way the masses of biters and larger, possibly hostile, groups could be avoided. Rhea found the area they were in and traced  
the highway they had been following. It didn't lead to any towns except for the big city of Atlanta. She bit her lip in frustration.  
Big cities were the one place she was trying to steer clear of. Traveling down from New York had taught her a lot on how to survive the new world.  
Big cities meant huge populations of biters and the worst kinds of humans. Rapist, vandals, and thieves.  
She sighed as there was no avoiding going to Atlanta. They were running dangerously low on supplies.  
Hunting wasn't an option. The river wasn't large enough for fish and there had been no tracks to signal that there were deer.  
Rhea tore open the rest of the crackers from the night before. She tossed Monty his portion and quickly ate her own.  
A silent prayer that it would be able to last them the long walk to Atlanta. Rhea broke down the tiny camp and continued on through the forest.  
It would be a few miles before they would come to an opening that led to another highway. She kept her bow in her hands at the ready.  
Monty trotted a couple steps ahead of her. His nose in the air, on the look out for any sign of a threat. Lucky for them their walk was undisturbed.

The sun had made its way from the horizon to its highest point in the sky. Rhea could easily make out the tall buildings in the city from the  
hill they had stopped to rest on. About 5 miles and they would be at the walls of Atlanta. She could already imagine the streets filled with the undead.  
All of their soulless eyes clouded with hunger and blood lust. Maneuvering the streets at night would be suicide so the sooner they got in and out, the better. The two of them jogged down the hill and kept up a quick pace. By time they made it to the surrounding barrier sunset was upon them.  
Looks like they would have to get in the city and find some sort of shelter. Rhea found an opening in a wire fence and held it open for Monty to squeeze through. She pushed herself in and pulled her bow off her shoulder. Docking an arrow, she began to lead the way.

Emerging from a dark alley way, Rhea scanned the street in front of her. So far no biters in sight. And to her surprise a small diner was just to the left.  
Rhea ran quickly but quietly to it and examined the exterior. The windows were still intact and blacked out. The door was chained shut.  
At least the looters hadn't gotten to this part of the city yet. Maybe there would be some canned food. Even stale bread would be good enough.  
Looking around Rhea found part of a broken pipe.

"Good ol' city trash." she smiled to herself.

She smashed the pipe against the chain and lock several times. At last the two broke apart and clattered to the floor.  
Rhea froze listening to the streets. Silent. She guessed no one or nothing had heard and a breath of relief escaped her lips.  
Raising her bow to her shoulder, she cautiously stepped in to the dark room. Just enough light flooded in through the door way to dimly illuminate it.  
There was a shuffle at the end of the counter and Rhea moved towards it. The sounds of ripping flesh grew louder as she approached.  
On the floor was a large man dressed in chef's attire. He was tearing into a mutilated body. Blood and human organs lay around him.  
Rhea sent an arrow through his head and the biter crumpled next to its victim. The diner was surprisingly empty other than for those two.  
She tucked away her bow but kept a hand on the handle of her hunting knife. She swung open the door to the kitchen and flicked on a flashlight.  
The sound of Monty's claws tapped against the cold tile floor. The shelves held rows of canned items.  
Rhea smiled to herself at the good fortune and piled whatever she could grab into her pack. It didn't matter to her what she was getting.  
All she could think about was having a full belly for the first time in weeks.

When her pack got to the point of bursting, Rhea slung it back over she shoulders and wandered over to the shipping door.  
A ladder that led to the roof of the diner was outside. Monty paced as he watched his master climb up it and disappear.  
Seconds later she came down for him. Rhea crouched to get on the same level as the large dog. Then he jumped onto her back and she held on to his paws. With one hand, she carried him up the ladder and dropped him down on the flat top of the building.  
She sat down and pulled out a can of soup for herself and a can of hash for Monty. As they feasted on the day's find, Rhea watched the sun disappear  
behind the skyscrapers. The sky turned from a firey orange to a dark purple. This wouldn't be the first time Rhea had slept out in the open.  
She found that it was better to head for the roofs of buildings. Most people didn't bother to check there and biters couldn't climb.  
Sometimes it got cold but it was better than being attacked in her sleep.  
Rhea pulled on her jacket and put her hood over her ears. Monty walked over to her and curled up into a tight ball.  
She lay her head on her pack and settled in for the night.  
Maybe two more days of scavenging and then they would be out of the city and back on the road.  
Rhea had no idea where to go. All she was aiming for was to survive as long as she could.  
And if that meant wandering the country with no destination so be it.


	2. TWO

A explosion jolted Rhea from her sleep. She jumped up to her feet to see a large ball of fire only blocks away.  
Monty barked frantically startled by the loud noise. Rhea shushed him and stared in awe at the sight.  
As the flames began to lessen movement caught her eyes. A group of cars hurried away form the scene.  
Rhea could easily make out the RV, gray truck, black Jeep, red SUV, and tan station wagon.  
She could also easily make out the hordes of biters that were attracted to the echoes of the explosion.  
The diner would soon be run over by the masses and that would trap her and Monty to the roof.

"Shit." she cursed under her breath. In a flash she grabbed her pack and Monty's collar.

In a swift move, her backpack went flying over the side of the building and the dog onto her back.  
Rhea raced down the ladder and scooped up her bag, hoping its contents were still intact. A whistle brought Monty's attention to her.  
They ran as fast as they could in the same direction as the group of cars. As much as Rhea hated it she would have to follow them in order to stay away from the crowded streets.

The two ran down the streets, jumping over rubble and bodies. The air around them grew hotter as they got closer to the sight of the explosion. The only thing that was left was a sign that read "Center of Disease Control: Atlanta, Georgia".  
Rhea didn't have time to stop and look at the damage. Following these people's trail would either help or harm her.

The group was surprisingly slow for having actual transportation. Rhea and Monty caught up to them because they had stopped at a roadside motel. Keeping distance between them, Rhea sat atop another hill over looking the area.  
She guessed it was a good time to see whether this group was just a bunch of travelers like herself or if they had other motives.  
It didn't take long for her to find out. Once she saw the two children of the group she knew they were just normal people.  
She watched them gather and talk. Picking out the leaders was another easy task.  
Two men, one with a sheriff hat and one with a police baseball cap. They seemed to run the show and everyone listened to them.  
Then there was him. Rhea's eyes shifted to a man who stood with his arms crossed just outside of the circle.  
Although he was part of their group he purposely set himself apart. Rhea decided to be extra cautious with him.

Now that she knew they weren't a band of murderers or worse, Rhea devised a new plan.  
She would follow the group since they seemed to be organized and knew what they were doing.  
This would make scavenging easier and finding safer shelter. If she kept her distance they would never know she existed.  
Plus they drove pretty slowly so she could run behind them and track them if she fell behind.

Car doors loudly clunked shut and Rhea clicked her tongue for Monty to follow her. She made her way down to the pavement below and took off into the trees. She got a good headstart on them before the cars caught up. Her bow bounced against her back with each stride.  
Monty kept next to her as they flanked the cars. Hidden by the dark shade of the trees they were virtually invisible.

Rhea felt a bit of triumph at how well her plan was working. She had been following the group for almost a week now.  
They never traveled too far each day. By night fall she would find their camp and set up her own just an ear shot away.  
When they ate they would talk about their plans for the next day and Rhea would fit her own path so she could get ahead of them.  
The occasional biters were never too much of a problem for Rhea and Monty.  
They were either easily out run or she would have to sacrifice one of her arrows to take it out.  
For some reason there weren't that many on the sides of roads. Rhea guessed they were either deeper in the forest or stuck in cities.

That night, the group had found an abandoned camping ground to take shelter in. There were no cabins but the area was enclosed in small wooden fences. Rhea watched the group survey the grounds. A few of them went into the welcome center and ranger station.  
The other's hung around the RV and pulled out chairs and set up tents. Rhea quietly laughed to herself.  
If it wasn't for the apocalypse these people would look like they were on a regular camping trip.  
The hair on the back of her neck began to stand up. Someone was looking at her.  
Rhea saw the man who usually went off by himself to hunt standing at the edge of the fences. He was looking in her direction.  
She froze up. Had he seen her? She was well hidden by a berry bush and Monty was laying down at her feet.  
There was no way he had seen her. The man stood staring at her spot for a few more seconds before heading into the woods.  
Rhea shook off the discomfort and ventured over to a rock formation. She would make her camp there.

Just as she finished making a tiny fire pit, she saw the man come back from hunting. Several squirrels hung off a rope and a large rabbit was in his hands. He was met by a woman with very short hair. She took a couple of the squirrels and went to a table.  
The rest of the group was sitting around their own fire. They weren't going anywhere for the time being so Rhea went off to hunt.  
The thought of having fresh meat made her mouth water. Canned food was getting bland.

A twig snapped under Rhea's boot as she walked through the trees. Her eyes scanned the branches above and Monty covered the forest floor. Rhea raised her bow and sent off an arrow. A quiet thud sounded as the bird she aimed for hit the ground.  
She bent over to pick it up, weighing it in her hand. The feathers would be good for the arrows she was making.  
Monty growled and then took off. He ran behind a fallen tree. There were sounds of a scuffle and then a shrill cry.  
The sound was cut short. Rhea smiled. He had caught whatever little creature was hiding there.  
The proud dog emerged from the tree, tailing wagging furiously. In his jaws was a rabbit. Rhea pat his head and began to head back to camp. A fairly good sized bird and a rabbit. Just enough for the two of them.

Rhea sat down and piled a couple cut up branches into her fire. She took out a lighter and sparked the wood. The small fire took and she was instantly warmed by its heat. Taking her knife she started skinning the rabbit. Monty circled their camp as she prepared dinner.  
Rhea was glad she still remembered all the skills her grandfather had taught her. Those summers she spent on the reservation were well worth it in the end. The whole apocalypse had brought her closer to her Native American roots. She was in touch with her hunting and survival skills. Rhea began to carefully pluck the longer flight feathers off the bird.  
Monty's deep bark roused her from her thoughts. He barked again, louder this time. Rhea began to panic.  
The other group would have definitely heard him. She glanced back at them and saw the men standing defensively.  
Her cover was blown. Monty rushed to her side and whined loudly. Rhea grabbed her knife and stood to see what he was fussing over.  
A dark shadow crept closer to her fire. Rhea didn't need to see it to know it was a biter. She could smell its rotting flesh and hear its deathly groans. The living corpse staggered into her camp sight. Rhea could hear loud footsteps coming towards her from the other camp. She groaned angrily and lunged at the biter. She plunged her knife into its temple and kicked it's body to the floor.  
Monty barked at the approaching men and she quieted him sternly. She stood her ground and waited for them to come closer.

Rhea patiently waited as she watched their faces changed from stone expressions to looks of surprise.  
Four men came to her camp. The two leaders, the lone wolf guy, and a bulky black guy. All of them held some sort of weapon.  
Rhea's eyes roamed over all of them. Two guns, a cross bow, and a bat. All she had was a knife and a bow.  
Hopefully they weren't looking for a fight.

"Told ya we were bein' followed." said the cross bow wielding man.

He had piercing blue eyes, muscular arms, and scruffy facial hair. A typical Southern redneck.

"Shut it Dixon." warned one of the leaders.

His dark eyes and strong jaw set made Rhea uncomfortable. He looked like someone who shouldn't be trusted.

"Who are you?" asked the other leader.

He was the opposite of the other man. Gentle blue eyes and an approachable manner.

"Rhea." she answered not taking her eyes off of any of them.

"Put away the knife." the dark eyed man motioned with his gun.

"Put away your gun first." she challenged.

"You aren't in any position to be making demands." he snarled back.

"Shane don't get all worked up." the leader stepped in front of him.

"What are you doing out here?" asked the black man curiously.

"Same thing you're all doing." she simply replied.

"Were you following us?" Shane asked aggressively. Rhea laughed to herself at his touchy, tough guy personality.

"Yeah. Didn't do nothing to bother you though. Just trying to find resources and shelter easier."

"Are you alone?" the gentle blue eyed man spoke again.

"No. I have my dog."

"So you're pretty much alone." the black man restated.

"Go back to the camp. Tell them it's ok. Shane stay here with me."

The other two gave Rhea one last glance and walked away. It was just her and the leaders now.

"Rick Grimes." said the man as he held out a hand.

Rhea shook it tentatively and turned to the other man.

"Shane Walsh." he said without extending for a hand shake.

"I feel like I'm about to be interrogated. Look I'll leave your group alone. If you don't like me following you then I'll split."

"It's not that. You haven't done anything to show us harm." Rick said.

"Aw c'mon Rick you're not doing what I think you're doing! We have enough people to look after already.  
She's been on her own. She don't need our help."

"Shane. She's just a kid. One person isn't going to change anything."

"Uh, sorry to interrupt but I'm twenty five. Not a kid. And he's right I don't want to intrude on your group. You look like you have enough to deal with."

"Rhea is it? Don't take his word so seriously. You being able to survive so well on your own is a good thing. It means you got skills that can help us out. I'm not asking you to come with us for your sake but for ours. Right now Daryl, the guy with the cross bow, is our only way of getting food. We have kids to feed and with you we could have a better chance at food."

Rhea contemplated his offer. The sob story was pretty convincing. But she had been on her own since the beginning.  
She didn't even know how to act around people anymore.

"Rick don't waste your time." Shane growled.

Monty stepped up to the men and sniffed them. He turned back to Rhea and sat next to Rick. His calmness was a good sign.  
Maybe he could smell the cop on them.

"Well I guess if I go with you we won't have to walk everywhere anymore." she joked.

"Great. Shane go over and prepare them. I'll help you with your camp."

Shane huffed angrily and nodded. He stomped off to the other camp. Rhea wasn't so sure about the decision to join these strangers  
but it couldn't be worse than what she had done already.

"There isn't much. Just my pack and bow. Thanks for the offer though."

Rick nodded and waited for her to gather her things. She snatched up her kills from earlier and followed Rick to his people.  
Monty walked behind her wary of meeting strangers. As they got closer to the car, Rhea could make out the faces of the watchful group. They all looked at her with hard stares. She felt uncomfortable as she put down her stuff and sat in a chair Rick brought for her.

"Rick what are you thinking bringing in a stranger."

"Lori we just lost people. It's not going to hurt having another pair of hands."

Rhea studied the thin woman talking to him. She had wavy brown hair and big doe eyes. She was obviously his wife and the young boy attached to her hip was their son. Rhea smiled reassuringly at him when she caught him looking at Monty.

"You're name is Rhea? It's interesting." an older man asked her.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you all..." her voice trailed off. This was awkward.

"I'm Dale. Where are you from?" he asked trying to keep light conversation going.

"New York."

"Glenn lived there for a bit. Is that right Glenn?"

A skinny Asian guy looked up not expecting to be part of the talk. "Yeah for a year." he stammered.

"How did you get all the way here?" the woman with short hair piped up.

"Well as soon as this all started I left when things calmed down and I didn't stop. I don't have anywhere to go."

"No family?" she had a look of motherly concern.

"Their in California. I don't know if their even alive."

A small blonde girl came out from behind the woman. She gave Rhea a sympathetic frown.

"Are you all heading somewhere in particular?"

"We just left the CDC. Wasn't much help there like we were hoping for. As of now we don't have a place in mind." Rick replied.

"We should be heading for Fort Benning." Shane growled.

"We don't know if they got overrun like all the other refugee camps." Rick shot him down.

"I wouldn't try. All of the refuges I tried to get into were long gone. All of them were either burned to the ground or swarming with biters." Rhea sadly pointed out.

"How bad is it?" Dale looked at her.

"Well, I can't really say. I learned to stay away from large cities. I've only been traveling on small highways and back roads."

The members of the group all had a sorrowful expression. Rhea felt bad for them. They had obviously gone through a lot.

"Come on Sophia. It's time to get to bed." the short haired woman stood up and led her daughter to a tent.

After she left Lori followed her with her son and so did many others in the group. Rhea was suddenly alone.  
Rick came over to her and sat in the chair next to her.

"Guess we skipped the introductions. Over there is T-Dog", he pointed to the black man, "That's Dale and Andrea," a blonde woman leaned against the RV door,"the little girl and her mother are Sophia and Carol, Glenn is the kid, Lori and Carl are my family, and that is Daryl Dixon," he pointed last to the lone man.  
He was cleaning his cross bow by his gray truck. He glared in their direction at hearing his name.  
Rhea tried to remember all of their names quickly.

"What happened at the CDC? I saw it explode and then I saw your group leave it." she asked.

"Generator ran out of fuel. The whole place was programmed to self destruct when that happened."

"Was anyone there? Did you find out about what's going on with the biters?"

"We call them walkers. And yes, Dr. Jenner the last scientist was there. He wasn't in his right mind though. We don't know much more about why people come back than we did before. We lost Jacqui there. And before the CDC we lived in a quarry. Got attacked by a horde of walkers. Andrea lost her sister Amy, Carol lost her husband Ed. Another family went to find their people when we decided to leave."

"I'm sorry. That is a lot to handle." Rhea really felt bad. These people's lives had been changed so quickly within the last month.

"What's your story? If you don't mind me asking. I do need to know who you are."

"It's not much of a story. I was just a struggling art student in New York. I had friends and a life. But then people started getting sick and people started dying. The military came and kept anyone from leaving. One day everyone was supposed to do to various refugee centers. I didn't leave my apartment. Good thing too because a day late the military shot anyone they saw on sight. I stayed in New York for a week. When help didn't come I decided to leave. Monty was all I had and well that was it. I had no where to go and no one to find. I was just surviving."

"But you survived pretty well on your own." he added.

"Yeah. It helps that my grandpa taught me how to hunt and live out in the wild when I was younger. It's a benefit of being Native American I guess. Monty has police dog training so he keeps me safe. I'm just lucky."

Rick nodded thoughtfully and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Well it's good we have you now. I'm sure you'll get along just fine. My son Carl will definitely love having your dog around.  
We should be getting some rest. We're moving on early tomorrow."

"Ok. I'll just sleep here then."

"You don't have to. Daryl! Do you have the extra tents?"

Rhea turned to see that the man was still up. He stood up and rummaged in the back of his truck.

"Yeah. Got a small one." he said.

"Let Rhea borrow it for tonight." Rick ordered before going into his own family's tent.

Rhea walked over to Daryl and took the bundle from his hands.

"Thanks." she said avoiding his piercing eyes.

Daryl just shrugged and hopped into his truck to sleep. Rhea sighed and found a secluded spot to set up the tiny tent.  
There was barely enough room for her and Monty. Sometimes she wondered why he was so big for his breed.  
The tent would have to do and it was only for a night.  
Rhea kicked off her combat boots and slid off her skinny jeans. Monty laid out next to her and she adjusted her position.  
Nothing was predictable anymore. She had firmly believed she was going to be alone for the rest of her journey.  
But due to one slip up and now she was part of a group who were just trying to stay alive.  
Rhea closed her eyes and tried not to think of what the future could hold.


End file.
